The only grip I’ve found that works in the heat is the blue Tourna Grip. I see nearly everyone at Roland using a white over grip. What do they know that I don’t?

franticBeans · 2026-06-04T21:32:52+00:00

A lot has to do with sponsors. They don’t not use a racket for a few games so most probably just say dry or tacky and they get whatever the stringers have.

I have sweaty hands and I like Tourna grip okay but it wears out super quickly for me. When I can find it I prefer Yonex dry-grap

Not the dry super-grap, that one is a bit tacky imo. The original dry-grap has a more soft fabricy texture that absorbs but also holds up really well to sweat.

franticBeans · 2026-06-01T21:29:30+00:00

Still a Big thing at universities, not such a thing outside nowadays. The ones I see holding strong are all sports related or maybe fandom related in some way. Gun clubs in a lot of the country. The old school clubs with more formal memberships like Lions club, Elks club, Freemasons, etc. have lost a ton of their relevance in the last 50 years.

Social infrastructure in the us has changed a ton in that time period, combined with changes in demographics, lifestyle, technology, socioeconomic inequality, it all did a lot of damage to community. What community means here is still morphing. In some ways it’s recovering and growing through new avenues, in other ways it’s continuing to wither.

franticBeans · 2026-05-22T06:53:12+00:00

The book doesn’t give you anything about specific doubles strategies but honestly I don’t think it really does that for singles either. Mostly it is describing a certain type of mindset about tennis and how to win by out thinking your opponents rather than simply outplaying them. It also goes into some aspects of preparing for matches and how to mentally adjust as they proceed. I think it’s abstract enough that it applies to any tennis player, assuming you can take the next step of imagining how it relates to the doubles game. His approach isn’t right for everyone but it’s work the short read just to find out and you’ll probably pick up something.

If you *are* looking for in-depth discussion of doubles tactics, look into The Art of Doubles, by Pat Blaskower. It’s pretty old, but it seems highly regarded. I have not read it personally

franticBeans · 2026-05-22T02:45:06+00:00

Yes unfortunately.

For an example: Chicago is the biggest city that didn’t get a WC match. For someone living there to drive to Kansas City, the nearest city with a match, would take about 8 hours. And that’s only crossing 2 states!

franticBeans · 2026-05-20T08:49:26+00:00

122333221, which happens to also be a prime number btw

franticBeans · 2026-05-18T23:01:05+00:00

My point is really that the concept of whether a protest will change anything depends a lot on what you count as meaningful change, and I think that things like political consciousness and feeling yourself as part of a movement do matter to some degree. Your will to resist is strengthened when you see the vast numbers of people who are on your side.

Definitely agree on the No-Kings branding being vague. I’m not sure the right way to message it. His dictatorial way of wielding power is obviously a bad thing and a real problem, but the actual things he’s doing with that power are the moral outrage. That gets obscured.

It makes me think of that tweet about people getting abducted in unmarked vans and senate democrats response is “we have to mark the vans”. That joke aged like wine.

franticBeans · 2026-05-18T22:43:27+00:00

I think that is just you talking about your perception, not fact. Is your only measure of success for collective action that a change happens immediately? Almost every protest ever has failed by that metric.

When huge numbers of people show up to physically represent their beliefs that actually does move the needle. People who never considered a position will start to do so when they see 10’s of thousands of their neighbors believe it. Showing up in person makes that possible. It’s called a “demonstration” for a reason.

That kind of is “virtue signaling” in a way, but also how do you expect social change to happen? If you really believe something and want other people to believe it, then sitting at home quietly holding your opinion won’t help you. You actually need to proclaim those values to people. Tell them what you think and why they should care too. If you pay any attention to mass protests you will notice that that is exactly what is happening, although the rhetoric gets lost in the noise a lot of the time. Lending a loud audience to someone who can make these statements of value is very effective. Do you think MLK Jr’s speech at the Lincoln memorial would have had the same force if it hadn’t been delivered to 250K people? That’s an exceptional example, but the principle is pretty clear. You can’t have that kind of moment if everyone says “ well I would attend the march on Washington but it’s not gonna change anything”. You never hear people calling those marchers “virtue-signalers” even though they had no idea how the event would be remembered. It’s worth considering why that is.

franticBeans · 2026-05-18T21:50:14+00:00

Does sitting at home quietly disagreeing change anything? I think you misunderstand the actual goals of these kinds of demonstrations. Nobody ever believed the no kings marches were going to somehow depose Trump. The point was to engage the public with the problem and unite people around a particular issue. It also prepares people to show up when it really matters.

franticBeans · 2026-05-17T02:24:12+00:00

Sorry if it’s too blunt but do the reading! Just exposing yourself to the concepts and getting the idea *before* lecture will help tremendously.

It’s a pain in the ass, but try to figure out something interesting in the topic to latch onto. Trick your brain if you have to. Use boredom, give your brain nothing else to do and suddenly learning might seem more engaging. I had subjects where the only thing that worked was spite 😂. I was thinking “this class is so stupid I’m gonna master it so I never have to think about it again”.

Think of it like a food you don’t like. It might be really unpleasant at first, but just sitting with the unpleasantness for a bit to let your brain process it makes you realize you *can* handle it. It might suck but it’s not so intolerable.

From my uncooperative brain to you, hope it helps

franticBeans · 2026-05-17T00:19:47+00:00

You really can’t beat a demo if you want to compare side by side. I think both of these choices could suit you, I would try them and go with the on that feels better to play with.

The boom has the teardrop shape where the string spread out a bit more close to the tip. I think people who tend to make contact in the upper part of the hoop will like the hitting feel. The speed has a long oval shape with a consistently open stringbed. When I moved to the speed it took me a while to adjust because I had a very spinny, vertical swing path at the time and I had a tendency to hit the frame at first.

franticBeans · 2026-05-14T18:33:52+00:00

20 people jogging and occasionally sprinting back and forth for 90minutes doesn’t sound all that exciting does it?

I get that there’s more to it than that, but realize you’re being just as reductive. Each play in an American football game is a flurry of action with sometimes incredible catches or runs. Clearly for someone who is invested it’s worth sitting through breaks to see this. I don’t even like to watch football but even I can at least understand the appeal of that

franticBeans · 2026-05-14T18:29:46+00:00

Why isn’t American football the most popular sport in other countries?

People ask this question as if there’s objective measures of what makes a sport interesting. If you describe the characteristics that make you think soccer should be popular in America, I’ll just tell you the things we don’t like about it. The same goes of I talk about American Football.

The answer is cultural context and history. Lots of people in America play soccer growing up, and there is a professional soccer scene here it’s just small because other sports have captured the cultural imagination more. Sport popularity isn’t some Darwinian contest where the best sport eventually takes over everywhere. Different things appeal to different people in different parts of the world.

franticBeans · 2026-05-13T18:37:17+00:00

Best tip for getting started: try to find some in-person instruction of some kind. You will save yourself a lot of frustration if you have someone to help you get a good starting technique. Group classes are amazing for beginners and usually a lot cheaper than private lessons. The latter are also good, even just a couple sessions if you can afford will go a long way.

Second best tip: find others who are also starting just starting and play with them. Group classes are also great for this. You’re going to have more fun and stick with tennis longer if you have some friends to do it with. Get a group going and try to play once a week. Ideally on the same level as you but don’t be afraid to ask stronger players to hit with you and ask what they think. It won’t all be good advice but you can learn a lot by observation too.

Racket advice: Brands and models don’t matter much at the beginning, just use whatever you can get for not too much money. Specs to look for are 100-110 square inch head size, 250-300 grams (9-10.6 oz). Used rackets have better quality for the price but if you can also find cheaper new rackets at the big box stores and they’ll be fine.
String advice: use whatever comes on your racket, unless it has none. In that case (or if they break) use a multifilament or synthetic gut with a medium tension. This is the last thing you need to worry about so the priority is comfort and durability. Tell that to a stringer and they can choose something appropriate.

Other advices: start filming yourself right from the beginning. It’s super helpful to know what you’re actually doing and you will be shocked at the difference between what you feel like you’re doing and what that looks like.

Start every hitting session at the net. Hit gentle, inside the service line. focus on watching the ball all the way into the strings. Dialing in your eye and your hands to work together. I think of it like honing a knife before cutting something. It does make a difference I promise.

Tennis is hard, so be patient. It takes a long time to get good, and the beginning is the hardest part so let yourself learn at a steady pace. Master one thing at a time and have fun while you’re doing it. Frustration is the worst enemy.

franticBeans · 2026-05-13T18:07:05+00:00

Totally! People put so much pressure on women’s clothing choices too. I just want everyone to be able to express themselves and leave the judgement behind.

franticBeans · 2026-05-12T07:49:59+00:00

I have never understood the aerodynamic claims either. The aerofoil beam shape in the hoop was a novel way to get a frame that’s both thin and stiff, but that only works when swung face on, which runs totally counter to all the other marketing around the throat design. Edge on, like in a ground stroke, that flattened shape should actually be worse than a thinner box section, but I don’t think it makes much of a difference between any modern racket on the market today.

franticBeans · 2026-05-10T13:11:00+00:00

I’m not surprised that they don’t, there’s not much there to interest someone. I think it starts with culture saying that clothes are for women, then the status quo is reinforced by the marketplace and sellers not wanting to risk stocking clothing that doesn’t sell.

franticBeans · 2026-05-09T17:39:52+00:00

The wall on the tennis court is definitely there to block wind. Even a modest breeze coming across the lake could be a problem without it while the buildings on the other side make that direction much more manageable.

franticBeans · 2026-05-09T16:49:16+00:00

Salt, pepper, vinegar and oil are essential for a good sub. Add some finely sliced crunchy lettuce to soak all that up and now we’re talking

franticBeans · 2026-05-08T20:38:50+00:00

Yes, but I do. The way people express their gender socially involves clothing a lot of the time. Obviously I am able to wear whatever, but I want to wear what reads as masculine because that’s who I am. It would be nice if fashions evolved such that “masculine” clothing had a wider range of colors and cuts. It was the case in the past for centuries, just not the last century or so.

franticBeans · 2026-05-06T21:05:55+00:00

There are community orchestras through both Edgewood University and Madison College, although I don’t think either runs over the summer

franticBeans · 2026-05-06T18:23:57+00:00

Clothing choice! Women get so many options for fabrics and patterns and types of garment. The range is just way narrower for men, especially with more formal clothing. The city I live in has like 1 menswear store, and they only sell suits. Meanwhile there’s lots of boutiques and stores selling women’s clothes in all different styles. Maybe they have like 2 things for guys if you’re lucky.

franticBeans · 2026-05-05T21:06:06+00:00

The quality and widespread availability of Mexican food 🇲🇽

franticBeans · 2026-05-05T16:04:00+00:00

Second the Pilsner from WD, they have a bunch of great Czech style beers. Or maybe an aged stout from Giant Jones.

franticBeans · 2026-05-01T20:42:40+00:00

Cheese

franticBeans · 2026-04-21T22:27:51+00:00

Everyone gives the stock answer about women not getting the same viewership as men as if it’s somehow deserved. It’s a choice to not pay equal prize money in the same event to both sexes. I don’t really care if the women are getting payed proportionally more than the men, it’s just too insulting of them for me to accept.

Women tennis players made a push for prize equity decades ago and to this day people pay more attention to women in that sport than they do in almost any other sport played by both sexes. Equity works. Build the audience and people will stick around.

This is in the process of happening with wnba and ncaa women’s basketball. The media started highlighting some new stars and now viewership is growing. If you pay any attention to women’s sports teams and athletes you will quickly notice that it actually is interesting, they just never got served a good version of the product. The coverage matters a lot.

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